


für immer

by DreamerFae



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 02:51:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17133665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamerFae/pseuds/DreamerFae
Summary: Touka brings an injured Ken home that night and their relationship began then. AU Ghoul Ken x Human Touka.





	für immer

**Author's Note:**

> für immer means forever

Ken ran and ran, holding a hand over the big hole in his torso, under the heavy rain. His feet hurt, his body numb and vision slowly fading. Turning into a narrow alley, he hoped that this would make his enemies lose sight of him. When their presences disappeared, he let out a huge sigh of relief and slid down the wall. He tried to force his eyes open but it was no use, as he succumbed to the darkness.

"That damned Nishiki! Purposely closing the shop slowly—" Touka paused in her sentence as her eyes narrowed at an outline of someone's body laying on the floor. Taking a step closer, she gasped when she saw a white-haired male lying in a puddle of his own blood. There was a gaping hole in his stomach and she quickly squatted down beside him to check whether he was still breathing.

She tensed upon feeling his breath. He was alive, but barely. At that moment, she knew that he was a ghoul. If he were a normal human, he would have died from blood loss a long time ago. Her mind debated over whether she should leave him to die here or nurse him. Freak it, she cursed. She didn't want to be responsible for this guy's death if she did leave him alone.

\--

Touka grimaced at the amount of blood she cleaned using 3 bath towels and quickly bandaged his torso without looking at the huge wound. Finally, she settled his body onto her bed and watched as his eye twitched in his sleep.

The male stirred and slowly opened his grey eyes. It then darted all over before looking directly at her. Kaneki bolted up from the bed and jumped to the corner of her room. He bared his teeth at her and brought out his kakugan. Before he could let his kagune out, he doubled over and groaned in pain.

"H-hey! You can't just get up so fast like that! You're injured!" Touka exclaimed as she made an attempt to walk towards him and try to get him back onto the bed. A kagune tendril shot out from his back and turned into the form of a spear before pointing so closely at her face.

"Don't come any closer to me." He warned. He couldn't tell whether she was an enemy or friend and had to be cautious.

His attitude was starting to piss her off. "Excuse me, I was the one who found you half dead in the alley and bandaged you up! The least you could do is thank me, and not point your kagune at me!"

Kaneki glanced over to the bloody bath towels beside him and then down to his bandaged body. Withdrawing his kagune and kakugan, he relaxed and sat down. "..Thank you."

"Good. Now lie back down onto the bed. You need rest."

He does as he's told and turned to face the wall. He heard her saying some stuff as she cleared the towels up but he doesn't bother when he's busy thinking of sleeping and leaving as soon as possible.

The first thing he did when dawn broke was move the woman from her sofa to the bed and left her house through the window.

\--

Touka awoke to the bright morning sun and frowned when she saw that he already left her place. He still looked pretty weak last night and she hoped that he was okay. At the back of her mind, she wondered what happened to have made people attack him until he was fatally wounded. But she swept the thought away. It's not like she'll ever see him again.

She went on with her usual life, working at a cafe near her home and spent her days peacefully.

It's been one week since Kaneki met with the lady who saved his life. His stomach hasn't healed at all and he cursed himself for being so weak. This was all because he couldn't find any food in this ward, nor could he kill anyone here due to strict laws of this ward. In his previous ward, he was able to get human meat with ease and still get away with it.

He walked on the streets, hand grabbing his shirt tightly when his torso throbbed and he bit his lower lip to bear with the pain. A delicious coffee scent penetrated the air and he directed his attention to a small cafe in the corner. He hoped that coffee would be able to heal his wounds a little or at least ease the pain. With those train of thoughts, he entered the cafe and was shocked to see the same lady who nursed him a week ago, working as a waitress there.

Both of their eyes widened when they saw each other and Touka quickly guided him to a corner seat before sitting down beside him. "Hey, are you alright? Your stomach..."

The male shifted his chair away from her, purposely putting some distance between them. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for--" He hissed when her hand settled over his stomach and she quickly retracted her hand.

"Don't lie. I'll be done with my shift in an hour. Wait for me here. Don't you dare leave without a word this time." She glared menacingly at him and he nodded with a swallow.

After her work was over, she guided him back to her house and passed him a brown paper bag. He brought it to his nose and sniffed. Human meat. His eyes looked to her, as if asking how she got this. "I know how hard it is to get food in this ward and you don't seem like you're from this ward either. So I borrowed some from my co-worker. He's a ghoul too. Don't worry, it isn't poisoned."

Despite her last sentence, he still opened the package warily and inspected the meat before taking a bite. She watched him chew slowly, swallow and smiled when he started to eat more of it. Within seconds, he was finished with the package and she handed him another one.

His kakugan was out again and she stared curiously at them. He was slightly disturbed by her gaze and asked, "What?"

"It's my first time seeing a ghoul's eyes up close."

"..And?"

"They're pretty."

He froze at her comment. Did she just compliment him? No one ever compliments a ghoul's eyes. They all say it's scary. This is the first time he's hearing a human say that.

"What?"

"I'm not lying. Hey, can I see your Kagune? I didn't manage to see it fully the other night." She asked.

"No."

She frowned. "Is this how you repay someone who saved your life and gave you food?"

Kaneki dragged a hand down his face with a sigh. He brought out his kagune as asked, and had 4 tentacles in the air. Her eyes dazzled at the sight of red scaly tentacles and she reached out to touch one. "Why isn't it sharp? You pointed a sharp one at me that time."

He answered her by sharpening one tentacle and making it soften. "We ghouls can control it."

She stared in awe and then looked at him. "So beautiful..."

His breath hitched, and he teared up a little since no one has ever called him that. Beautiful? How is he beautiful? All he's ever done his whole life was kill people and ghouls with these. They're ugly, sinful, disgusting. He's anything but beautiful.

All his life he was overcome with hatred because his human mother abandoned him when she realized that his father was a ghoul and she gave birth to a full ghoul too. From then on, he hated and couldn't trust humans. But why—when she cupped his face and pressed a kiss to the side of his mouth with a smile—did it make his heart beat so fast?

"You had a very lonely expression in your eyes earlier. I couldn't help it. Sorry." Touka said.

Though he swore to never trust humans again, he moved closer and enveloped her in his arms. Just once, he wanted to know how a human's warmth felt like. She was warm, unlike a ghoul's normal body temperature of 30 degrees. Pressing his nose into her hair, she smelt like coffee and flowers.

To his surprise, she returned the hug and wrapped her arms around his waist. Tears brimmed in his eyes when she pulled him closer and he tightened his grip around her. The way she hugged him and ran her hand soothingly down his back made him feel so wanted and so loved. It was something he didn't have, not even once in his life.

He separated from her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that—"

Touka saw his tears and smiled sadly. Poor boy. He must have been devoid of love for a long time. Maybe because she lost her family at a young age, that's why she understands how it feels to be lonely. Though he hasn't said anything about the reason why, she could see it in his eyes. I'm lonely. I need someone to love me.

She can't help but want to give him what he wanted. Since he was one head taller than her, she had to stand on her toes and wrap her arms around his neck to reach for his lips. She pressed her lips gently against his and he froze on the spot.

So many things ran through his mind but the main one was why is she kissing him? She was a stranger to him, and yet she's been doing nothing but weird stuff and stepping into his privacy. As much as he hated humans, he couldn't hate her. Not when she nursed him, gave him food, hugged him and now kissed him. It took him some time to relax his body and open his mouth to accommodate to hers. His arms go around her to pull her close and he inhaled the flowery scent of her. If he could eat human food, he'd say that she tasted like sweet strawberries.

They separated hesitantly and gazed into each other's eyes. Touka's hand caressed his cheek and she smiled. "Let's date."

His mind said no, he shouldn't date her because he's a ghoul and someday she'll get hurt. But his body said yes, because he has craved love for a long time.

"Okay."

—

When Touka asked where he was staying, he told her that he was sleeping in different areas at a time. Sometimes the park, below a bridge or on rooftops. He hasn't found a job so he doesn't have enough money to buy or rent an apartment. He was homeless basically, so she asked him to move in with her. Since he was new to the ward, he didn't have many items with him. So they also went to purchase some necessities and new clothes.

Once they were settled down with everything, Touka sat down beside him on the bed and intertwined their fingers together before laying her head against his arm. His heart started beating real fast, just like the time she hugged him. She doesn't say a word but he could see that she's smiling.

"You can do anything you want with me, you know." She finally spoke.

"..I'm sorry. I'm new to this so I don't know what I should do."

This was the truth. It was his first time dating, and on top of that, his partner was a human girl.

"It's okay. We can learn together."

\--

Being a novice at dating, Kaneki didn't know how to be a boyfriend. It's been a week since they started dating and the only thing he's done for the past week was stand outside the cafe and watch his girlfriend work. He felt like a stalker of some sort but he really didn't know how to do this relationship thing.

Touka was aware of his presence whenever she worked and each time she turned in his direction, he'd quickly hide behind a tree or wall and hope she didn't spot him. But alas, she did and would always laugh at his silliness because he looked so cute doing that, as if they were playing hide and seek.

After the one week, she finally invited him in for a cup of coffee and settled down beside him. His heart raced at the proximity of their shoulders almost touching and he stared down at her hand which rested on the table. Trembling, he placed a hand atop hers, and watched her eyes light up and cheeks turn pink. He felt his own face warm as well, and decided to take it a step further, intertwining their fingers together.

Being a man of few words, he didn't know any romantic words to say in this situation. Touka knew that, turned her hand over and laced her fingers with his before giving him a smile. All he needed was encouragement and a little help along the way. 

Ever since he was little, Kaneki has had problems trusting others and always kept to himself. He did everything alone. Ate alone, hunted alone and slept alone. For the past 25 years of his life, he's been doing that with no problems. After his mother abandoned him, he thought he had closed his heart off to prevent anyone from entering it. But Touka did, so easily and made a mark there.

She'd give him a big smile and welcome him home each time he returned from work, listen carefully to what he said, and touched him so gently and with so much love. Just as how she stormed into his life, he found himself falling in love with her.

Touka could tell that Kaneki was starting to change with her by his side, as he would have more smiles and laughter now than when they first met, where he always had a solemn and lonely look on his face. Truthfully, she enjoyed his company as well, being someone who also craved closeness with another, since she lost her family at a young age. She started looking forward to heading home, where he would always wait for her patiently and shower her with kisses and hugs. 

They'd chat a little, and he'd ask how was her day, to which she complained about the stupid customers she met and he would laugh each time because she made it so funny. Then, they would shower and cuddle on the bed before falling asleep in each other's arms.

Sometimes, he would disappear for a day or two, just to hunt for food and she was always so worried whenever he did. But each time, he would press a kiss to her forehead and promise that he'll be back. He kept his promises and gradually she didn't worry as much as before.

It was around 4 months into their relationship that they started getting intimate with one another. It started off with them casually kissing on their couch, to which Kaneki took the kisses further and pressed his lips against the sides of her neck. She let out a gasp, panting as she felt his hands go under her shirt and they separated to gaze into one another's eyes.

He would have stopped there if she didn't encourage him to take her to bed and soon, their clothes were strewn all over the floor and their naked bodies were pressed together. It was both of their first times and though it was painful and uncomfortable for them, they enjoyed every minute of it because being this close and intimate with someone was something that they have craved for their whole lives. 

Kaneki cried the moment they were done with the act and Touka pulled him to her chest, running her fingers through his white hair to comfort him. His arms went around her and she held him until he fell asleep.

He never thought that he'd fall so deep in love with her but he did.

\--

One night, Kaneki was worried because she was late in returning home from grocery shopping and decided to check in on her at the supermarket. On the way there, he heard a familiar evil laughter and quickly turned into an alleyway. He found the gang of ghouls from his ward who was chasing after him, led by Matsuo, surrounding Touka. His eyes dilated with horror when he saw her bleeding and brought out his kagune to slit the necks of the ghouls who had their backs to him. 

Touka's eyes widened at the sight of her boyfriend.

Matsuo was alerted due to the screams and smirked at him. "Oh, so you were here? We were looking all over for you and decided to ask your girlfriend when we couldn't."

He growled, anger evident in his red eyes. "What did you do to her?!"

"Oh, nothing. Asked her where you were and she refused to answer. Gave her a little injury—" 

Before Matsuo could finish his sentence, Ken's kagune had flown past him, made a small cut on his cheek and pulled Touka into his arms. He gritted his teeth as he stared down at her wounds and glared at Matsuo. "I'll kill you."

"Ken, I'm okay.."

He smiled down at her. "I'll protect you. Don't worry, it'll only take a while."

With them, he narrowed his eyes at Matsuo and the gang. He was fine with being hurt but no one, no one was allowed to hurt his girlfriend. Bringing out more tentacles, he was about to attack them when a group of guys' laughter could be heard and the gang quickly retreated, knowing that they could get in trouble if they were spotted. Fights among ghouls were fine in this ward, but if a civilian was hurt in the process, they would be arrested by investigators.

\--

"Doctor, please help her! She was attacked by ghouls!" Kaneki exclaimed, pleading with the doctors to save her. Touka was looking really pale now, having lost too much blood and they immediately brought her in.

After a few hours, she has finally stabilized and he was allowed to visit her in her hospital room. She was given a few stitches and although she was in pain, she forced a smile when he settled down beside her bed. He had his head down, tears dripping down his cheeks. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault—"

"It's okay. I'm alright now. The doctor said I can be discharged in a week!"

He looked at her with teary eyes. "Those guys who attacked you were the ones who injured me when you found me that night. They're after me because I killed some of their comrades in the past. You shouldn't be involved in this. It's dangerous if we continue to date, I think we should break up—"

Touka squished his cheeks with her hands and frowned. "No, I won't break up with you. I promised, didn't I? That I would stay with you."

"B-but you might get hurt again in the future. What if they came after you again?"

"I'll have you here to protect me. I'll even take up self-defense classes if you want me to. So please don't say that you want to break up." Her own tears dripped down her cheeks and he moved to hug her.

He swore on his life that he'd protect her.

\--

They resumed their normal lives once Touka was discharged. The doctor advised her to stay at home for at least 3 more weeks before returning to work. She was hesitant but Kaneki insisted that she did and promised that he'd help her if she needed him. Of course, she agreed under his pressure.

While he did help her with the house chores before, now that she was injured, he did everything by himself. She needed all the time in the world to rest and he would do anything to ensure that she did. He still felt that her getting hurt was his responsibility and fault, and watched her every minute of the day even after she returned to work to make sure she was safe. 

One night in bed...

With his arms around her, Touka gazed at Ken's face and caressed his cheek. "Hey, where do you see yourself in 10 years?"

He pondered for a bit before smiling down at her. "I see myself married to you and us having children together."

She grinned. "What? Are you saying you're gonna propose to me one day?"

"Someday, I will. Then we will be together forever."

\--

Soon after that, Kaneki started receiving challenge letters from Matsuo, asking him to meet at a certain place for a showdown but he wasn't stupid and threw all of the letters away. It continued on for around 2 weeks and then they stopped coming. 

One night, just as he was on the way to pick up Touka from work, he received a message from her.

Good evening, this is Matsuo. Since you wouldn't meet me by yourself, I have asked your girlfriend for some help. If you want her alive, come to 123 Shinjuku Warehouse. 

A photo of Touka tied up by ropes was attached in the message.

His blood boiled. He'll kill all of them.

After arriving at the place, he saw the gang surrounding his girlfriend who was bound to a chair by ropes and Matsuo smirked at him. "I see you came."

"Let her go. She has nothing to do with this. If you want a fight, I'll fight you."

"We can't have you running off with her once we release her, can we? Besides, it'll be nice to see your reaction once we start playing with her." Matsuo smirked, bringing out his kagune to point at her.

Before Ken could go to her rescue, he was held down to the floor by 5 ghouls and Matsuo laughed. "Let me go, you bastard! I'll kill you!" His eyes flashed with anger.

"If you want your girlfriend unhurt, then you better do as I say."

"I rather die than--" He gasped when Matsuo placed his kagune on Touka's neck and blood started to drip down. 

"You WILL do as I say." The male repeated, eyes narrowing at Ken.

Touka shook her head at him, telling him not to listen but he bit his lower lip. He had already decided that he would protect her no matter what. "Fine. Let go of her! I'll do whatever you want me to do! Just don't hurt her!"

Matsuo smirked in victory. "So romantic. First, you'll kneel down and beg me for forgiveness for causing the deaths of my friends."

Despite knowing that he was doing this on purpose, he got on his knees and apologized. But Matsuo never planned to let Touka go and ordered his men to beat Kaneki until he was happy. Each time he tried to retaliate, Matsuo would position his kagune at Touka's neck and he had no choice but to continue to receive the beating.

Tears flowed down her cheeks as she watched them kick him and stab him with their kagunes. "Stop! Ken..he'll die!"

Satisfied from seeing Kaneki all beaten up with bruises and wounds, Matsuo released Touka and she quickly ran over to him. Though Kaneki knew he couldn't regenerate anymore, he still smiled when he saw her running towards him uninjured and slowly reached a hand out to her. In the blink of an eye, she was stabbed in the stomach from behind. His eyes widened as she fell to the ground, laying on her side. "Ken..."

Gritting his teeth as tears fell down, he roared, "Curse you, Matsuo! You promised you'd let her go!"

The male only laughed.

Lightning flashed in the sky, thunder following soon after and the rain came down hard on them. Ken used one arm to drag his bloodied and weak body against the ground towards his girlfriend and cupped her cheek when he was beside her. Staring down at the huge hole in her stomach and the pool of blood that surrounded her, he knew she wouldn't make it and couldn't stop his tears from falling. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..!"

Touka opened her watery eyes and shook her head. "It's not your fault, Ken. You did all you could to protect me. Thank you."

He could tell that he was losing her, from her pale face and shallow breathing and sobbed even more. Pulling her into his chest, he let his tears fall and kissed her head. Touka weakly wrapped her arms around him and whispered so softly that he almost couldn't hear her. "..I love you, Ken. Thank you for everything. If I could be reborn in another life, I would still choose to spend it with you."

"M-me too. I love you, Touka. I promise that we'll be together forever in our next lives. We'll meet again, get married and have children!" 

Touka smiled up at him and slowly closed her eyes. She went limp in his arms and at that moment, he knew that he lost her. Hugging her so tightly, he wept in sorrow until the flame in his own life also died out.

The couple remained in each other's arms even as they left this world.

100 years later, they were reborn as humans and even retained their memories of one another. They found each other again, and this time, they stayed together forever.

\--

Forever is a long time, but I wouldn't mind spending it by your side.


End file.
